As Holm turns MMA world upside down, we're left with questions only rematch can answer

Holly Holm and Ronda Rousey

For a challenger with zero chance against the once-in-a-forever combat goddess champion of women’s MMA, Holly Holm did pretty OK.

It’s almost as if no one told her that Ronda Rousey (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) was an immortal whose only concern was figuring out which sport to dominate next. Certainly no one told Holm (10-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) that she wasn’t supposed to survive the first round in the main event of UFC 193 in Melbourne, Australia. As for winning? Come on, be serious.

Only Rousey gets to win. It’s so consistent that it’s practically a part of the unified rules.

Then this happened. After knocking the champion all around the cage in the first round, Holm knocked her out cold in the second. She took Rousey’s full-speed-ahead aggression and used it against her. She not only beat the champion no one else could even touch, she did it by forcing Rousey to play her game – another feat never seen before in Rousey’s 12 previous fights.

And now, as we reel in shock from one of the greatest upsets in MMA history, we are forced to ask ourselves how. How did Holm do it? How did so many of us miss it? And, inevitably, can she do it again?

The way you choose to answer that last question may depend heavily on how you answer the first one. It depends on whether you think of this as a fight that Holm won or a fight that Rousey lost. Because there is a difference, along with many shades of gray along the path from one extreme to the other.

For instance, consider the question of strategy. Holm had the perfect one to defeat Rousey, and she executed it flawlessly. Remember the knock on Holm in her two previous UFC fights, how she wouldn’t commit to coming forward behind her strikes, opting instead to hang at the outside edge of her range, scoring but rarely hurting? Against Rousey, she faced an opponent who would solve that problem for her. Holm didn’t have to close the distance so much as maintain it, and it turns out that she actually does that quite well.

As Rousey tried to punch her way into the clinch, Holm stung her with left hands and circled back to the center. When Rousey did get in close, Holm immediately went about the business of hand-fighting to set up her escape. Once she had Rousey frustrated and exhausted, she carefully laid her shin against the champion’s neck and then gave her plenty of space to fall.

It was a nearly flawless performance, but it was also one that exposed some serious gaps in the Rousey armor.

As good as Holm’s game plan was, Rousey’s seemed just about that bad. She couldn’t get her hands on Holm, couldn’t toss her on her head and tear off her arm – couldn’t even keep her in one spot for long. She marched straight forward and got mouthfuls of leather each time, often with a look on her face like she didn’t know that was possible. Or just had never had reason to care before now.

She didn’t get much help from her corner between rounds. Rousey’s coach, the embattled Edmond Tarverdyan, told her she was doing great. This after losing the first round of her pro career, and losing it decisively. By the time the second frame started, we saw a Rousey we’d never seen before: tired, confused, swinging at air and stumbling to the mat.

And after everything that’s gone on with her these past couple months, how can we not wonder whether she didn’t lose this one outside the cage?

Whether the many distractions of Rousey’s particular brand of stardom played a role in her painful downfall or not, her attitude in the days leading up to the fight undoubtedly affected the way fans reacted to it.

At the weigh-ins, Rousey railed against what she perceived as the “fake sweet” demeanor of her opponent. She worked herself into a fury. She wouldn’t even touch gloves. Faced with a firm but mostly courteous Holm, Rousey responded with a weirdly indignant rage. Who did she think she was fighting, Miesha Tate?

It was as if Rousey needed to talk herself into a rivalry where none existed. Judging by Holm’s post-fight reaction to knocking out the fighter who had mocked her and her team the day before, she really is just genuinely, authentically nice. There’s nothing fake about it. The only thing she did to provoke Rousey’s ire, it seemed, was refuse to back down. As if it’s a surprise that she didn’t come to lose. As if it’s offensive that she actually thought she had a chance.

It turned out, at least on this night, that Holm had more than a chance. And if UFC executives feel like making a big pile of money soon (and it seems like they do), they’ll book a rematch soon to give us a chance to find out whether Holm can pull off the same magic trick twice.

In the meantime, we’re left with a landscape that’s been violently altered. The biggest star in the sport – the unbeaten, untouchable Rousey – is perfect no more. That’s not to say that her allure is totally shattered. Her dominance made her noteworthy, but it wasn’t the only thing that made her a star. If there’s one thing people love more than a winner, it’s a comeback.

But for that to happen, Rousey will have to bring something very different to the rematch. As for Holm, she’ll bring the belt.

For complete coverage of UFC 193, check out the UFC Events section of the site.